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Vector
is a Scrapyard businessman. It is not known if Vector is his first name, surname, or an alias. He is the top broker in the Scrapyard’s illegal parts, specifically human body parts and organs and is responsible for supplying Tiphares with one person’s worth of body parts and organs on a monthly basis. He later expanded into functioning as a broker for supplying the Factory with material from the outlying Factory Farms and mines that are located far beyond the Scrapyard in the Badlands. Following the collapse of the Factory system in Last Order, Vector emerged as the most powerful person in the Scrapyard and was instrumental in helping maintain a semblance of order in the wake of the civil war that engulfed the aerial city following Desty Nova's public revelation of the secret of Tiphares. Appearance Vector is a tall, skinny, dark skinned man who is almost never seen without his sunglasses on. He is completely bald and was clean-shaven at first before later growing out his beard and mustache. At the end of Battle Angel Alita and in Last Order, Vector is wheelchair-bound as a result of the injuries he received from being shot by the Barjack. He initially wore business suits, later adding a scarf. In Last Order he wears patterned robes and a scarf and smokes cigars. In Gunnm: Martian Memory Vector wears a white business suit over a pink dress shirt. Personality Despite his underhanded dealings, Vector is not without a sense of personal honor. His repeated offers to Hugo of the management of a supply route despite his young age, killing of one of Hugo's victims because he heard Hugo's name, and offer to shelter Hugo after Zapan uncovered him as a spinal column thief are examples. While instrumental in helping preserve order in the Scrapyard following the fall of the Factory, Vector's business interests are tied to the fate of the city and he is not doing so out of purely altruistic reasons. Relationships Hugo got Vector's attention and earned his respect by willingly trading his hand for his brother's. Their business relationship unwittingly started because Myra mentioned that Vector had been to Tiphares. Although this was a falsehood, Vector could not deny it and thought that he could dissuade Hugo from getting there by offering him passage for 10 million chips. Vector knew of Kaos from listening to him when he was broadcasting from Radio K.A.O.S. He was surprised when Kaos appeared in the Scrapyard a year later to discuss the Tower of Tiphares. At first he pretended to be attentive, but realised that Kaos was genuinely sincere about the project and decided to test him. Because Koyomi saved him from being executed by the Barjack on Den's orders, Vector never forgot this and later repaid her by paying for her father's operation on his legs and giving them a place to stay at Wabi-Sabi Antiques. Abilities *'Truth discernment': Vector has the unique ability to instantly tell whether anyone is lying to him by seeing it in their eyes, regardless of whether they are a human or cyborg. The ability helped him survive the Scrapyard at a young age and to build up his business empire. *'High intelligence': *'Astute businessman': Vector's business empire has expanded to the point that he became the most influential person in the Scrapyard. Following the fall of the Factory this has effectively made him a law unto himself. History Vector met Hugo when the latter came across his brother’s hand being sold by one of his street dealers and offered to trade it for one his. The dealer was unsure about this but Vector approved the trade. After Hugo's surgery, Myra, one of Vector's employees, mentioned that Vector had been to Tiphares. He did not deny it to save face in front of his employees and offered to send Hugo there if he could put together 10 million chips. Vector also bought the illegal human parts such as spinal columns that Hugo stole. Plot ''Battle Angel Alita'' .]] Three years after meeting Hugo, Vector procured six intermediate Factory tube supply routes as a result of reorganization by the Factory. He sought Hugo out and offered him the management of one of these routes, a highly lucrative position, but Hugo turned it down. When he dropped Hugo off, Zapan, who had been staking out Alita, realised that Hugo might be connected to a string of recent spinal column thefts because of his association with Vector. Vector was confronted by Alita and Hugo in his office after they learned about the impossibility of reaching Tiphares from the surface from Daisuke Ido. Vector revealed that he had knowingly lied to Hugo, thinking that he would eventually give up over having to accumulate such a high sum of chips. However he underestimated Hugo’s determination however and thought he could change Hugo’s mind with the offer of the supply route. Vector then unleashed Zaariki, who he had hired as a bodyguard, on them. Although Alita made short work of him, Vector escaped Alita’s wrath when Hugo went mad that he had been chasing an impossible dream and she left to chase after him. in the Epilogue]] Years later, Vector’s caravans are being ambushed by the Barjack. Unlike other bandits, they cannot be bought off, and Vector has had to put up with their attacks for five years. As the Barjack close in on Tiphares, he meets with Den at Factory Farm 15 in an attempt to broker a deal to protect his interests. Den however, orders Vector and his guards to be killed. Vector narrowly escapes death when Koyomi intervenes and suggests that he be sent back to the Scrapyard to warn its residents so that they have time to evacuate. The Factory pressures Vector into keeping silent, however. It is implied that the injuries he sustained were serious enough to confine him to a wheelchair. At the end of Battle Angel Alita, Vector and Kaos together bring peace to the world in the wake of the turmoil that ensues when Tiphares almost collapses and the factories shut down. ''Last Order'' -- the first two were in his introduction in Battle Angel Alita).]] In Last Order, Vector has become the most powerful person in the Scrapyard. Kaos approaches him with a plan to build the Tower of Tiphares, but Vector violently turns him down, and has his thugs beat up Kaos. More of his background is also revealed. Now 49, Vector arrived in the Scrapyard 40 years ago, coming from a poor village on the outskirts of the city. He survived and built up his empire, thanks to his ability to judge if someone was being honest with him. Kaos’ complete sincerity does not move him, and he tests Kaos’ resolve by having a metal cuff placed on him that connects his left arm at the wrist to his throat, rendering it useless. Retaining the key, Vector proposes to Kaos that he return in a year and see if he can still talk about his dream to build the Tower of Tiphares. Vector’s influence is so strong that when Kaos is hit by a taxi, the quack cyberphysicians who were planning to perform street surgery on him back off and leave him alone because Vector’s mark is on the cuff. Despite his treatment of Kaos, Vector is a man of his word. In repayment for Koyomi having saved his life from the Barjack, he prevents her from being sold to pay for her father’s street surgery when he broke his legs by catching her after Den dropped her, allowing them to board in an antiques store that he owns. A year to the day after he met with Kaos, he keeps his schedule open for their meeting. Kaos’ transformation after receiving Alita’s paper airplane, resulting in his defeat of Pizmo and justification of his goal in order to atone for his sins impresses Vector, and he agrees to invest in the Tower of Tiphares. The side story Barjack Rhapsody shows that Vector is committed to the project and anxious about the effects that a resurrected Den will have on the Scrapyard should he decide to attack the city again. One the eve of the Tenth Zenith of Things Tournament between the Space Angels and the Space Karate Forces, Vector, Kaos, and Nova X team up to broadcast Combat TV's coverage of the ZOTT to the Scrapyard. Vector has Koyomi run a copy of the Scrapyard's declaration of independence in the morning paper and arrange for a reporter to interview him. He also arranges for all motorball races to be cancelled for the night and for the match to be broadcast for free at the Agrippa Circuit. After Kaos loses the crowd by talking about the meaning of the match in terms of freedom for the Scrapyard, Vector simplifies things by offering the chance to bet on the outcome. He then proposes to Kaos that the two of them wager on the match, with Kaos becoming the first president if the Space Angels win, and Vector managing the Scrapyard if the Space Karate Forces win. After Alita resurrected Vector was smoking a cigar and did not react. When the Onion Frame was separated from Ketheres as part of Emergency Program Phase 4, the sudden shift in weight caused the Orbital Elevator and Tiphares to drop, triggering a gigantic shockwave that hit Mount Tiphares and radiated through the Scrapyard. Everyone at the Agrippa Circuit was knocked to the ground with Vector being thrown from his wheelchair and cutting his forehead. He assured Kaos that he was okay when the latter came to him.Phase 105 Other appearances .]] In the OVA, Vector's operations encompass control of the exports sent to Zalem via the Factory Tubes in addition to his black market dealings in human parts and organs. He also has a stake in the Coliseum gladiators and as part of his deal with Chiren to send her to Zalem, he has her upgrade his gladiators so that they will win more fights. He asks Yugo to join his operation, but is turned down. Vector comes up with the idea of having Alita fight for him as a gladiator after Zahriki loses a match, also coining the moniker "Battle Angel". He decides to use Yugo as a bargaining chip and assigns Chiren the task of recruiting Gally. After Chiren returns empty-handed from her task to get Alita to fight for Vector, he has her killed and harvests her organs to fill his monthly quota from Zalem. Ido, enraged at Vector’s manipulation of Hugo, confronts Vector in his office, where he discovers Chiren’s organs. Vector has Zahriki attack Ido, but he manages to slice Zahriki in half with his rocket hammer. One of Zahriki’s arms flies off and impales Vector, killing him. Vector appears in ''Gunnm: Martian Memory. He does not threaten Hugo and Gally with Zaariki when he is confronted about his lie to get to Zalem. Vector is played by Mahershala Ali in the Alita: Battle Angel movie. References Category:Scrapyard residents Category:Battle Angel Alita characters Category:Battle Angel Alita: Last Order characters Category:Battle Angel (OVA) characters Category:Gunnm: Martian Memory characters Category:Males Category:Deceased